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Usually, I make a point of finishing the games I review, in order to be as fair as possible with my critique (or my praise). But with Strikers, it was an achievement even to finish the first level. It took me literally weeks (albeit, not nonstop) to master the finely tuned dodging skills and multitasking that the game requires to survive the hordes of enemies and projectiles it throws at you, and to learn the methodical way of collecting powerups so that I had a chance of defeating the level's boss. Last night, after about 20 tries, I finally beat the first level. And immediately died on the second level. "Well, that's it," said I. "Time to write my review." Strikers is one of the more polished and well-made games I have played on this site, but only the most patient and dedicated of players will ever experience everything it has to offer.
Strikers is basically a throwback to the arcadey scrolling shooters of yesterday, so its gameplay really isn't anything unique. The screen advances as you shoot enemies and dodge shots with your ship. You can collect various powerups along the way. It sounds basic and boring, but the sheer level of polish the game exhibits combined with a sprinkling of original, highly fitting ideas makes Strikers so good a knockoff that I had to keep reminding myself that I wasn't playing an emulated version of some forgotten arcade or NES classic. Strikers perfectly channels just about everything that we love about classic games of its type: The zen-like feeling, the hidden depth, the simple entertainment of garnering points and earning powerups, and most of all the addictive quality. If you can get past Striker's biting difficulty curve, you'll find that there's a lot to fall in love with.
Striker's graphics are just as magnificent as its gameplay, in just the same ways. Daggerhog's sprites look great, his animation looks great, and the way everything fits together looks great. But it's the game's sense of style that really shines. Like the gameplay, Striker's art could have easily been pulled straight from gaming's golden days (setting aside the fact that one enemy is a giant IPod). Even little details like the color choices for the menu or the number of frames of animation used perfectly capture this style. Flashy-looking games like Kaos are certainly impressive, but there's something to be said for the reserved, subtle mastery that Striker's visuals exhibit.
So... guess what the sound and music are reminiscent of? Yep. Same exact deal here. Everything that should have a sound effect has one, and they all sound perfectly retro. There are a good number of musical tracks that change depending on whether you have powerups or not, and all of these are great as well. And yes...very retro.
But if there's a single complaint you can level at Strikers, it's that the game is almost ridiculously difficult. I mean, you preferably want the first few levels of your game to ease new players in and get them hooked. THEN you can start piling the difficulty on. You don't want to be stomping on them from the get-go--especially on a free games site such as this--because most people will just give up. Strikers isn't an unfair game. Your deaths are 99.9% of the time the result of ineptitude on your part. But it requires a good deal of skill to make any progress at all, and a good deal of replays and grinding to acquire that skill.
Overall, Strikers is a wonderful title that is only marred by its lack of forgiveness. If you're patient and willing to put some time into the game, you'll find that it's a title you can really dig your teeth into. But sadly, I don't see the majority of YYG players doing this. And it's really their loss. I give Strikers a 5/5.
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